Harvard University Professor of Economics Caroline Hoxby presents "The Impact of Charter Schools on Student Achievement." Hoxby is currently the program director of the Economics of Education Program at the National Bureau of Economic Research. She has written extensively on the effects of charter and bilingual schools in primary and secondary education. More recently, her studies have focused on colleges and universities. (Thurs., 7:30 p.m., Stoddard Auditorium, Smith College. No admission charge.)

"BREAK! The Urban Funk Spectacular" is a high-energy tribute to 30 years of hip-hop dancing. This performance will feature break dancing, power tumbling and a live DJ. "BREAK!" has performed on five continents, and past performers include Puff Daddy, Janet Jackson, Whitney Houston and Luther Vandross. (Fri., 7:30 p.m., Fine Arts Center Concert Hall, UMass. Call 545-3671 for tickets and information.)

The 75 members of the Amherst College Symphony Orchestra, led by conductors Mark Lane Swanson and Rob Lane '05, will open Homecoming Weekend with an all-Russian classical program. The orchestra will perform a rousing overture by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, the fiery Fifth Symphony by Dimitri Shostakovich, and will be joined by Juilliard virtuoso Henry Wong Doe for the popular Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto. (Fri., 8:30 p.m., Buckley Recital Hall. No admission charge for College students; $5 for others.)

Five College Women's Studies Research Center (FCWSRC) Associate Christina Hanhardt of New York University will talk about the history of sexual minorities organizing against police and street violence in San Francisco and New York from the late 1960s through the early 1980s. This lecture, "Dis/placing Race: The Politics of Violence in Queer City Space, 1965-1982," is part of the FCWSRC's lecture series and will focus primarily on how ideas of safety were shaped not only by emergent notions of gay community, but also by urban policy and studies of violence and homophobia. (Tues., 4:30 p.m., 83 College Street, South Hadley. No admission charge.)

Editors' DVD Pick of the Week

"The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," starring "Joan of Arcadia" star Amber Tamblyn, Alexis Bledel of "Gilmore Girls," America Ferrera from "Real Women Have Curves" and newcomer Blake Lively, tells the story of four girls who share laughter, tears and a single pair of pants over the course of their first summer apart. Though the girls are of different shapes and sizes, the pair of pants fits each of them. We follow the girls' separate adventures as they send the pants to and from Maryland, Greece, North Carolina and Baja, Mexico. The movie, an adaptation of Ann Brashares' bestselling series, is a heartwarming look into the bonds of friendship.